Mikheil Saakashvili, currently held in a penal institution in Tbilisi, has provided written responses to the international corporation Deutsche Welle. In his statement, the former President of Georgia, now a citizen of Ukraine, characterized his legal status as analogous to that of a prisoner of war. However, beyond his personal situation, the politician formulated harsh predictions regarding the geopolitical future of Eastern Europe and pointed out non-obvious obstacles to Ukraine's accession to the European Union.

Legal Status and Domestic Political Rhetoric

Mikheil Saakashvili was detained in Georgia in October 2021. Currently, he is serving a six-year sentence on charges of abuse of power — specifically regarding the cases of the beating of MP Valeri Gelashvili and the killing of bank employee Sandro Girgvliani. The former politician is also a defendant in criminal proceedings related to embezzlement and illegal border crossing.

Saakashvili claims that his detention regime is characterized by strict isolation, and the coordination of his cases is managed by external centers of influence. As a demonstration of his political stance, he confirmed the retention of exclusively Ukrainian citizenship. In an interview, he accused the ruling party "Georgian Dream" of lobbying Russian interests and facilitating sanctions evasion through the Georgian financial system.

In the politician's opinion, Tbilisi's current course, including the freezing of negotiations on European integration, poses long-term risks to the country's security and could lead to a loss of sovereignty in favor of Moscow. The official Tbilisi, in turn, rejects claims of political motivation behind the former president's detention, emphasizing the legality of the court verdicts. The Prosecutor's Office and the Penitentiary Department of Georgia do not comment on new statements, citing compliance with international norms.

Forecasts on the Conflict and Deoccupation

Assessing the course of the military conflict, Saakashvili linked the prospects for the deoccupation of Ukrainian territories to the stability of the political regime in the Russian Federation. In his view, strikes on Russia's critical and military infrastructure have a destabilizing effect on the internal management system, which is a key factor for the liberation of lands.

Economic Barriers for Ukraine in the EU

Regarding Ukraine's integration into European institutions, the former president shifted the focus from the familiar anti-corruption agenda to harsh economic realities. He highlighted two main factors capable of slowing down the accession process:

  • Agro-industrial sector: Saakashvili called the competition of Ukraine's agro-industrial complex with producers from Western and Central Europe a key barrier. Tariff and production challenges could become a serious obstacle.
  • Political protectionism: According to the politician's assessment, economic resistance from European farming lobbies could slow down negotiations more than the failure to meet Brussels' reform criteria.

In the context of international law, it should be noted that the status of a prisoner of war is regulated by the Third Geneva Convention and does not automatically apply to persons convicted by national courts under general criminal articles. The assessment of the legality of verdicts remains within the competence of the Georgian judicial authorities.